iPhone SDK Limitations: Multitasking, Java, Emulators

[matticus008]

I have a G3 iMac with 300 MHz , 128 MB and a 10 GB HD. A modern iPhone will outperform this machine in many ways. Everyone is and was allowed to code for it and I did use a lot of third party software (including free). It never got screwed up anyway.

They're not the same by a long shot. A full PC has a much wider range of hardware resources and much deeper, more capable pipelines. A modern ARM CPU is comparable in per-clock performance to a Motorola 68040 (better than a Pentium, not as good as a Pentium II). Full PCs also utilize virtual memory more effectively, have chipsets which are less CPU-intensive, and can handle more threads at once.

The ARM architecture is very good for an embedded system, and it has excellent performance given its power requirements, but it's not just a miniaturized PC. There are very real limitations, particularly in handling memory, that affect all mobile OSes.

But I downloaded a program for my phone which closes progs by default when the X is pushed and only minimizes progs when the developer puts a flag for minimize in there. Surprising how much more stable WM is when you do that.

Exactly. The same behavior is mandated for the iPhone, but it does one better. It must close when told by the OS. This does not mean it will automatically be closed when you switch out of it.

Seemingly silly things like the stopwatch; why can't I time something while I go about my day, take calls, or browse the internet?

Stopwatch does run in the background.

Saying that the iPhone doesn't have GPS is correct in the true meaning of the technology, but that is only semantics because it does triangulate your location. Google Maps?

It's not semantics. The iPhone does not have GPS. Google Maps is not a GPS service. Signal triangulation is not GPS, but merely a locating service.

 

[OS X Dude]

Why do people think that WM is the only comparable smartphone OS?

that award goes to Android, and it ain't out yet lol

 

[Tosser]

Yes, you truly are a genius. Happy now?

 

[christian_k]

They're not the same by a long shot. A full PC has a much wider range of hardware resources and much deeper, more capable pipelines. A modern ARM CPU is comparable in per-clock performance to a Motorola 68040 (better than a Pentium, not as good as a Pentium II). Full PCs also utilize virtual memory more effectively, have chipsets which are less CPU-intensive, and can handle more threads at once.

The ARM architecture is very good for an embedded system, and it has excellent performance given its power requirements, but it's not just a miniaturized PC. There are very real limitations, particularly in handling memory, that affect all mobile OSes.

The first computer I used that had a hd ( so: the first machine I could really "install" something on ) was an Amiga 1200 with 4 MB Ram (no virtual memory!), a 68ec020 / 14 MHz and a 40 MB HD. The OS offered multitasking (so background stuff was possible), but even during that time I didn't need anyone to act like "Mister president" claiming to protect me from all "evil".

If things got to slow, I used fewer things at a time. Simple.

Christian

 

[OS X Dude]

The first computer I used that had a hd ( so: the first machine I could really "install" something on ) was an Amiga 1200 with 4 MB Ram (no virtual memory!), a 68ec020 / 14 MHz and a 40 MB HD. The OS offered multitasking (so background stuff was possible), but even during that time I didn't need anyone to act like "Mister president" claiming to protect me from all "evil".

If things got to slow, I used fewer things at a time. Simple.

Christian

Yeah - in all my apps I'd just overwrite applicationSuspend and then you CAN run your programs in the background. Easier on our part

 

[matticus008]

an Amiga 1200 with 4 MB Ram (no virtual memory!)

Nope. AmigaOS had a RAM disk long before the 1200 existed.

The iPhone, in contrast, like most embedded systems, does not have dedicated swap space available to applications.

The OS offered multitasking (so background stuff was possible), but even during that time I didn't need anyone to act like "Mister president" claiming to protect me from all "evil".

Sure you did. Out of memory errors were quite common codes in the guru messages back then. Your Amiga also wasn't designed as an appliance first and a development platform second. If you broke it, no big deal. People expect their phones to work.

You could fit several applications on a floppy disk, while many web pages today wouldn't even fit on one. Your basic PDF is larger than most Amiga applications. Amiga OS also didn't have resource-intensive processes running in the background like an iPhone does (e.g. Apple's own multitasking applications will take precedence).

Frankly, people are analyzing the interface guidelines with a little too much dramatic flair. Apple wants people to code their applications with the assumption that it will be closed by the OS. This ensures prompt state-saves, automatic restore, optimized launch times, and minimal developer gluttony. Concessions will almost certainly be made for certain applications that need real-time data access, but as a rule, you can't rely on them. They're taking steps to cut down bloat.

It steps on a few toes and clips a few wings. C'est la vie.

 

[rogersthat]

Sdk

100 M for the SDK?

god, google has only 23 m

i love apple